Mission File: The Nuelthak
by Delsch89
Summary: Shepard and her team tries to figure out what's happened to a crashed ship on a dangerous planet, when the mission takes a nasty turn for the worse. Partly FemShepard/Thane. Takes place somewhere during ME 2, contains spoilers.
1. Chapter 1

_My first Mass Effect 2 Fanfic, so please be gentle. :) Nor is English my first language, so expect errors.  
_

_I do not own Mass Effect, Bioware does that. _

_Spoilers are very likely so read at your own risk._

* * *

"Something on our scanners."

EDI's voice made Rachel Shepard look up, determination steadfast on her face.

"Please tell me it's what we have been searching for," she said, as she used both hands over the console screen, moving around several pages of data about the planet and the current mission they were on.

"It is a distress call from a Cerberus research team. Must be the crashed ship that you've been ordered to find."

Shepard glanced at the pictures of the planet on the screen. It looked exotic enough with its red jungles and beaches but there was a warning in the data files about it. A Citadel recommendation to avoid it because it was filled with dangerous wildlife. Definitely not the best planet to crash on.

"Let's get this over with then," Shepard sighed. As much as she hated Cerberus, it was in her own interest to help them out for now. Besides, she _did_ owe them her life. As much as she hated to admit it. Visiting dangerous locations was part of the job and frankly… it couldn't be much worse than Tuchanka or a Collector ship.

"Tell Thane and Garrus to get ready and meet me down at the hangar," she said as she stepped away from the console, heading towards the elevator to get her armor and weapons.

It wasn't long until she headed down to the hangar herself, armed and ready. As expected, the two alien team members were already by the shuttle. Garrus was checking through his sniper rifle, while Thane stood with his hands behind his back next to the shuttle. Both looked at her upon her approach but said nothing. These days she rarely went anywhere without them. She trusted their skill in battle, and prefered to have the two snipers watch her back more than anyone else. There was of course more personal reasons behind it too. Garrus was a close and trusted friend who saw her as more than just a Commander. Same went for Thane, although he was these days more than just a friend. His presence was soothing on her and she liked having him nearby. Their time together would be short as it was without her running off on missions constantly.

Shepard tilted her head to them both, a silent gesture for them to get ready and enter the shuttle. The usual norm was that she would brief them on the shuttle down to the brown-red planet. The shuttle took them down to one of the beaches right outside a massive jungle. Shepard jumped out first, looking around, before focusing straight ahead.

"Shepard, the crash site should be just 200 meters straight ahead," EDI's voice was heard in their communication channel.

"Got it," she replied, as she pulled out her assault rifle, making a gesture for the others. Thane and Garrus both took out their sniper rifles. Right now, she preferred it if everyone held their weapons ready, considering the planet's story.

With her in the lead, they started to move into the lush jungle they had landed at the edge of. The jungle was unlike those of Earth. Everything was either brown or dark red. The trees themselves were short with thin trunks, but they had massive, dark red leaves. There were no real signs of any bushes, just various sized trees. The ground was covered in brown sand and seedlings from the trees. In short the place was very omnious and quiet.

"Here I thought nothing could match the Collector's ship," Garrus muttered, as he looked to the sides casually. Shepard frowned, stepping to the side to put her gloved hand on a nearby trunk. Unlike trees she knew, these seemed to have their sap outside on the trunk. She removed her hand, with some effort since it had gotten stuck to the tree, before spotting the small insects and other plants stuck in the sap. Some of them seemed to be… half melted into it.

"As if the animals of this planet weren't dangerous enough, even the trees seems to be carnivorous," Shepard frowned, looking ahead of them. Despite the clusters of trees, there were small walked up paths heading in every direction. Probably used by animals. "Keep an eye out," she said out loud.

She walked on ahead, following the path that led right forward. Despite the terrain, those 200 meters were easy to cross but they ended in a cliffy area that contained no trees. Orange, sharp cliffs stretched upwards and according to the scanners, the crashed ship were just on the other side of them.

Climbing over them proved to take some effort but there were a lot of cracks to place feet and hands in so after just a few minutes, Shepard could peer over the top cliff. She could hear the rustling sound of Garrus and Thane reaching the top as well, all three looking down at the crashed ship. There was debris all over the area below them, although it looked as if the pilot had tried to steer the ship in between the cliffs. Whoever had been in it could very well have survived the crash. Yet there were no signs of anyone around them.

Shepard moved over the top off the cliff before sliding her way down to the ground, finding it a lot easier to head down than up. She went inside the ship, checking it out but finding nothing that stood out or could help them. Thane went to shut off the distress beacon, while Garrus looked around, using the scope of his sniper rifle to be able to get a better look.

"No signs of any survivors," Thane said, the ridges above his eyes moving into a frown.

"A lot can happen during one day," Garrus pointed out, as he lowered the weapon, looking over at the Commander.

"Scout out the area. Carefully," she ordered, not missing the questioning look. "There must be something around here."

What had to be over 30 minutes of looking around the ship and the very small sheltered valley the cliffs created, Shepard started to think that this was futile. They had found nothing, no blood, no signs of any survivors. No footsteps had left the ship area.

Just as they were about to give up, something actually did happen. A large shadow passed over them, large enough to put the entire valley under slight darkness for a few seconds. There was no sound and it had passed as quickly as it had arrived.

"What was that?" Garrus said in slight alarm, looking upwards, his keen eyes trying to spot whatever had caused the shadow but the sky was as clear as ever.

Something suddenly impacted with the cliffs they had climbed earlier, throwing pebbles and smaller rocks all over the place. Shepard winced, raising her arm over her eyes to shelter them from some pebbles, before she managed to gaze upwards, spotting the cause of it. The brown creature now perched on the cliffside was almost in the size of a Thresher maw, with large bone-like jaws filled with small but sharp teeth. A pair of long, thin wings that seemed to barely hold together served as front arms as it balanced on the rocks, peering down at them. A long tail swirled behind it, rimmed with sharp spikes.

Even though the bone armor didn't protect all of its body, the size alone told Shepard that it wasn't a creature they could fight, nor did she want to take the risk. The biggest problem was that she didn't know what it was. She had no way of knowing how it'd react to aggression or fleeing, or what could be its weakness. At least Krogans or Humans she knew the weaknesses of.

Her mind worked on a way out for which couldn't be more than a few seconds although it felt minutes. Seconds of thinking with no result. The creature let out a shrill roar, using its powerful hind legs to kick off from the cliff, tearing loose a large chunk of it. Instead of flying upwards though, it dove right down towards them, pulling up its legs in front of it.

Everyone moved to the side as the creature's feet slammed down among them, creating a cloud of dust on the impact. The cloud drove everyone to temporary blindness and coughing, while the creature's sharp growls was heard through it.

Shepard cursed in between coughing, feeling like an idiot for being so startled. Now they were separated by a cloud of dust, unable to see each other and with a raging, bloody _dragon_ amongst them. She saw Thane's figure dash past the creature's back, before its long tail landed right behind him, causing him to tumble down to the ground, rolling several meters from the impact.

The dust was settling quickly though and before Shepard could reach Thane she saw him get up on his feet, his full attention on the creature. Just like her, he hadn't started shooting at it and she wasn't sure if it was cause she hadn't said anything or if he simply thought the same as her regarding the creature's reaction. Although it was quite obvious now it was hostile, despite their intentions. The creature lifted one foot and put it on the ship wreckage, before rolling it backwards towards them. It caught a surprising speed, forcing Shepard to dive to the side, rolling up to a kneeling position afterwards.

She winced as she spotted Garrus further off, equally surprised by the rolling ship. The creature had spotted him as well, jaws and throat trembling in the low, vibrant growl it let out, entirely focused on him. Shepard frowned; she had no intention of getting anyone killed while under her command and she swapped to her own sniper rifle, taking aim within moments.

Only the creature's head and chest seemed to be covered in the boney material so she took a shot to its thin but scaly throat. Scales were rendered asunder at the edge of the throat and it lifted its head, shrieking in surprise but otherwise it didn't seem particulary injured.

The instant afterwards, it faced her in the scope, red eyes looking for the source of its pain. Before Shepard could aim and pull the trigger again, a pair of strong arms grabbed her waist, pulling her to the side abruptly. She landed on her side, just as the creature's tail impacted to the ground where she had been kneeling earlier, stirring up more dust.

"Thanks," she mumbled, recognizing Thane as he released his grip around her waist and he nodded to her, though the concern was clear enough in his black eyes. How he always managed to spot every slighest danger in time amazed her really. Not that this was the time to be dazzled by the Drell's actions or curse the lack of her own, as she got back up on her feet. Thane pulled out his sniper rifle once she was steady and shot towards the creature, since it seemed to at least distract it.

"Get the hell out of there!" Shepard called towards Garrus. Now was his chance while the creature was being fired at.

"We're barely causing it damage," Thane said quietly, lowering the sniper rifle briefly to glance at Shepard. Shepard moved to activate the communications channel, gesturing for Thane to keep the creature occupied while Garrus made a run for it, which he was. She could see him dart between the fallen rocks to get out of its way, while Thane made sure to time every shot just as the creature thought the pain over and tried to resume its attacking position. Clearly it wasn't used to its prey fighting back.

"EDI, we have engaged one of the... _larger_ native animal forms. We could use an extraction," Shepard shouted into the link, while keeping an eye out for the battle.

"Shepard, according to my scanners you're facing a Nuelthak. Highly aggressive and dangerous. A shuttle extraction would most likely result in disaster."

"This is already a disaster," Shepard frowned, though she suspected EDI was right. That thing would tear apart any shuttles trying to reach them.

"The Nuelthak have difficulties hunting in dense forest areas. I'd recommend trying to lose it in the foliage," EDI continued, before Shepard cut off the communication in order to focus on the situation.

"Right. We need to head back to the jungle," Shepard told Thane and Garrus who had just arrived, looking unhurt. "That thing can't follow us there."

"That means climbing back over the cliffs, Commander. _Past it_," Garrus said, the mandibles at his jaws flexing once.

"I know, Garrus," Shepard replied sharply, looking towards the Nuelthak. Thane was still shooting at it, not really aiming at any particular area anymore since the shots made no real damage to it. It still stood in the same spot, winching and roaring at the steady assault of weapon fire, especielly when shot in the face.

"It'll have to do. We'll have to climb and shoot at the same time," Shepard said, or rather ordered as she put her hand on Thane's sniper, lowering it to stop him from shooting again. One swift gesture later and they all three dashed back to the part of the cliffs they had climbed earlier. Thanks to the Nuelthak's landing, they were much smaller than before, making the climbing less difficult and slow.

They took turns in shooting, causing the Nuelthak to roar louder and louder, clearly seeing where they were going with this. The prey was escaping and it didn't like that. It unfolded its wings, roaring but stopped abruptly as one of Garrus's bullets hit it straight in its mouth. The effect was so strong that it reared back and turned to the side, coughing wildly towards the ground as if trying to spit up the foreign object and failing.

"Now! Go, go!" Shepard roared as she heaved herself up over a part of the cliff. A few precious seconds were spent on climbing as they reached the top, and Shepard turned around to shoot at the Nuelthak again, only to end up seeing it race towards them. It didn't need to climb the cliffs, one heave upwards with its wings and it landed literally on top of them. This close, Shepard could see the numerous claws along the wings' back, and the bone hard scales on its chest, hear its frustrated, loud breathing.

Shrieking loudly the Nuelthak swooped its left wing at them, knocking off both Garrus and Thane from the cliff, both tumbling down in a clutter of dust and pebbles, luckily in the direction of the forest though.

"Shit," Shepard growled through her teeth, lifting her assault rifle and letting lose a whole thermal clip into the belly of the creature. It only served to make it aware of her position, landing one foot way too close to Shepard, inches from her legs.

Back down at the ground Thane and Garrus came to, the latter getting up on his feet first.

"Shepard?" he called out, looking around before his attention came to the Nuelthak above. Realizing what was going on he started to shoot at the animal with his assault rifle while moving forward, even screaming something to get the Nuelthak's attention away from Shepard.

Shepard rolled out of the way from the Nuelthak's feet before heaving herself up to the next part of the cliff. The Nuelthak was again distracted by bullets, sliding a little and had to retort to using its wings as arms. Unfortunately the sliding meant that its head sided up along with Shepard. She paused, staring again into its eyes, this time only a meter away. Large reptile eyes, emotionless.

"_Siha_!" The voice woke her up from the almost trance as she looked ahead again, grabbing hold of the rock in front of her, digging her fingers down into the cracks. She spotted the shade of green in front of her and heard the nearby pistol empty clip after clip to keep the Nuelthak at bay while she climbed. Thane was moving, she could tell as much, both he and Garrus trying to attract the attention of the creature, trying to help her and putting themselves at risk.

Seeing its prey slip away, the Nuelthak roared in fury. The wings moved forward with uncanny speed as the whole bulk of muscle and bone threw itself forward. Shepard felt it as slow motion as one of the wings lashed out towards Thane, at the same time as the Nuelthak's jaws locked around her chest and waist. She wasn't sure what was worse, the crushing force of the teeth and jaws around her or Thane falling backwards, his blood splitting the air after the wings' course.

"Thane!" she cried out, moving her hands to the edge of the jaw that was keeping her in place in a desperate attempt to get close, hammering at its skin. The Nuelthak lifted its head, the growling from its throat making Shepard's head vibrate, causing her to grimace. She spotted Garrus on his way up, the shock on his face too clear with his eyes wide open.

"Help him," Shepard called to the turian, still caring little for her own situation, although she was still punching the Nuelthak's jaws. Part of her was surprised it hadn't just clipped her in two already. Garrus hesitated, though he didn't need to act on it since Thane was moving on his own.

The Drell moved to a sitting position, left hand clutched over his chest. He grimaced as he stood up, the ridges in his face clenched together by pain before he dropped his hand and reached for his pistol instead, again firing at the Nuelthak with his eyes clenched together in focus and pain. His chest had a broad, bleeding gash across it. The Nuelthak let out a sharp growl but refused to drop Shepard to the ground. Instead it kicked off from the cliff, wings flapping unsteadily before flying off.

Garrus's mandibles were clutched to his cheek in tension, as he tried to aim after it but at this distance he could very well end up hitting Shepard. With an anxious expression he lowered the weapon, not sure he could believe what had just happened.

"Damn!" he exclaimed suddenly, turning to Thane as he sheathed the weapon. He linked to the Normandy via the com, glancing at Thane as he did so; the Drell had returned his hand to the wound on his chest. Telling the rest of the Normandy that Shepard was as good as dead wasn't going to be easy. It just wasn't possible to imagine her going down like this. Judgning by the expression on Thane's face, he didn't believe it possible either, as he gazed towards where the Nuelthak had disappeared.

* * *

_Well, that's part one! Obviously enough the Nualthak doesn't exist in ME, hope it wasn't a too silly creature. ._


	2. Chapter 2

Shepard winched as the flying rocked the Nuelthak's head, causing the small teeth to grind against the armor. Even though they couldn't penetrate it, it still hurt like hell. Why the creature hadn't just killed her already was still surprising but she wouldn't question its motives.

Thane had been injured while trying to help her and who knew just how deep that gash had been. She'd find out soon enough though. The Nuelthak had made a mistake when it went after her friends and injured Thane. But the biggest mistake was to leave Shepard alive. The Commander's worry over her companions and the subconscious stress over her current life threatening situation only served to piss her off right now.

The Nuelthak didn't fly very high; for whatever reasons. Maybe it wasn't built for high altitude flying. That worked fine for Shepard, her mind already working on a way out of this mess. Fear and shock would have to remain in the subconscious part of her mind for now. She turned a little in the jaws, gritting her teeth against the pain as she bent her arm backwards to reach over her back. Most of her weapons were pinned down to her armor by the jaws. However the shotgun being placed low on her back was free and fully functional.

Shepard remembered how the Nuelthak reacted to being shot in the mouth; hopefully that was its weakness. At least a shotgun round down its throat ought to hurt a lot. She focused her gaze on the ground below them, feeling the need to hurry. The wind and the pain were dulling her senses by the minute.

When it finally did lower its altitude, Shepard realized that it was because it was reaching its destination. But upon seeing it, she was in an even more hurry to get away from it. It was approaching something that could only be described as a nest. A branch made nest among the cliffs, filled with what had to be at least 10 hatchlings. They were very small, in the size of a dog but even from this distance they seemed as ferocious as their parent, climbing on top of each other and small mouths opening in shrill shrieks.

Dropping from the Nuelthak now would most likely be her death. She had no choice but to wait until she was in the actual nest and take her chances from there. She moved the shotgun to rest the base against her side while the muzzle was aimed towards the base of the creature's mouth. Using the shotgun from this position would most likely give her a bruise afterwards but that was a low price to pay.

Shepard looked down towards the nest, feeling the change of speed in the Nuelthak's flying as it started to increase its wing flapping before landing at the edge of the nest. She clenched her teeth together before pulling the trigger of the shotgun, ignoring the squealing hatchlings below her.

The effect had been all she had hoped for. The Nuelthak reared up with a loud roar, dropping Shepard at the brim of the nest. Blood quickly trailed down from its jaws as it continued to trash around in pain, scattering the red fluid everywhere.

The hatchlings, all small copies of the adult one was shrieking as well in fear, so far avoiding Shepard as she got up on her feet in the nest, gasping for air. She hadn't realized how small breaths she had taken up till now due to the grip and it took her a few seconds to get a bearing. The rock shook as the Nuelthak staggered about on the cliffs that the nest was supported at, so being able to actually stand steady was tricky.

Shepard sheathed the weapon before moving the now free hand to her side, gritting her teeth in pain. She quickly stumbled over to the edge of the nest, looking down below it. The cliffs ahead were more like a hole filled, rocky area than actual cliffs. Very possible to run across if you were agile enough and she could spot the unnatural red colors of a jungle cluster further off.

The human glanced over her shoulder, eyes growing wide as she saw one of the hatchlings having gathered courage and leaped for her with its mouth wide open for a nasty bite. Shepard wheeled around, ignoring the sharp pain in her side before smacking the side of her armored arm right into the hatchlings head. It fell to the ground with a shocked yap but turned over as soon as it had landed, hissing.

Shepard quickly vaulted over the nest's edge and landed with a roll on the flat cliff below. Time to see just how good at sprinting she was. Keeping her eyes on the ground to avoid any cracks or holes, she started to run forward.

First when she had made over ten meters in distance she looked over her shoulder, swearing loudly as she realized that the hatchlings weren't bound in the nest. Almost all of them had jumped over the edge as well, sprinting after her like their strong hind legs were made for nothing else. Thankfully they seemed incapable of flying yet.

Pulling out the shotgun again, she stopped and turned briefly, loading bullets into the closest hatchling. Much to her surprise it didn't fall after one round, but it took another three rounds before it fell to the ground in a bloody pile.

Why the hell did the hatchlings had to be as resilient against weapon fire as their parent, she thought furiously, abandoning that idea as she started to dash forward again. Her foot landed in a crack, making her stumble forward but she managed to save her footing just in time. One fall here and she'd be surrounded by a pack of wild beasts. Nothing she intended to try out now or ever.

A twinge of fear settled in her gut. The thought of dying again was unsettling, threatening to remove her focus from the situation. The loud scream from the Nuelthak further off made her glance over her shoulder again. The large creature was up in the air now, heading right towards her, flying just above the cliffs.

She was so close to the jungle now, but in the speed the Nuelthak was going she'd never make it in time. Her eyes scanned the area, her well trained mind giving her the edge she needed. She suddenly started to run towards the left instead, towards a few peaks of rock. It would only be a few more seconds now…

The Nuelthak swooped down towards her, just as she dove in behind the peaks. The animal let out a loud growl, trying to break in but its speed was too great for it to stop. It crashed chest first into the peaks, breaking off the top of them at the impact. Shepard didn't pause to check on the situation; the Nuelthak's head had paused right next to her, shocked after the blow. It opened its eyes in time to spot her dart off, the vertical black pupil narrowing to a thin line.

Some of the hatchlings had stopped on the way, while the strongest of them had reached the adult now. They didn't stop either, dashing ahead, eager to feed.

For a moment Shepard got hit by the thought that the edge of the cliffs ahead might just stop abruptly but much to her relief she could see them narrow down to a slope. It still was a treacherous slope though, with sharp rocks and numerous ways to fall and injure herself even more.

Gritting her teeth, she started to slide down the slope, keeping her right hand on the ground behind her. Something snapped just behind her, making her realize just how close the hatchlings were. Even while sliding down she managed to glance over her shoulder, spotting three of them standing up at the cliffs, pacing around while growling. Hoping they wouldn't follow, Shepard continued to slide down, stumbling the next moment as her strength failed her legs suddenly and she ended up rolling down the last bit, landing hard in the sand by the forest.

She coughed down into the sand before turning to the side with a grimace. Just as she thought she could take a break, she heard the sudden roar, turning her attention upwards.

"Damn it!" she expressed her thoughts loudly, as she staggered up at her feet wildly, dashing in among the trees, before the Nuelthak landed below the cliffs. Now she hoped EDI was right about its reluctance to hunt in the forests else she was definitely screwed. Her chest was aching from the long sprint and the former trip through the air in a Nuelthak maw.

Shepard kept on running as much as her lungs would allow before she paused by a tree, throwing her back towards it to be able to look towards the Nuelthak. She could see it pace around outside the edge of the trees, before it roared and lifted off, disappearing somewhere over the cliffs.

The woman tilted her head backwards with a long, loud sigh, allowing her body to finally relax for a short moment. With a wince she realized that her hair had gotten stuck into the trunk of the tree. Swearing, she recalled the sap outside of them and she grabbed her hair in her fist before pulling loose. She had to wriggle loose from the tree with her back too, groaning at the spot of hair strays stuck to the sap. Well, it could have been a lot worse, she though with grim irony, rubbing the back of her head.

With an aching chest, head and sides, she looked around, wondering just where the hell she was. She tapped the communications device, frowning as it let out a little buzz before dying entirely. It would seem that the Nuelthak ride had done more than just bruising her body.

This was probably where most people would start panicking. Being stuck without communication on a dangerous planet like this and when the rest of the crew probably thought her dead already. The woman winced a little when thinking about the others. Although they were probably safer than she was. Thane wouldn't let a gash like the one he had got bring him down, she knew that much. Besides, worrying about him now wouldn't help her own situation.

She put her hands on top of her head, mostly to stretch and check the limits of her injuries. Most important thing was to keep her head cool and her attention on the environment. She still had her weapons and with some medi-gel she'd feel better soon.

_Keep yourself together, Shepard, this is far from the worse situation you've been in_, the woman told herself, gazing upwards through the leaves.

* * *

_Hope you all like it! Next chapter's gonna be a lot less about Shepard. Time for some team action. ;)_


	3. Chapter 3

_Sorry for being a bit slow, I'll probably be that as long as it involves actual squadmates. . **Really** trying not to mess anyone up.  
_

* * *

"No deep tissue damage. No fracture to ribs. Dense Drell physique… fortunate!"

The Salarian grabbed Thane's shoulder, pushing it to turn him to the side as he thought through what was probably another theory as to the Drell's wound. Thane tried his best to focus on what was going around them rather than listening to Mordin. He knew this could be dealt with somewhat with medi-gel but the good doctor insisted on checking the wound through properly, scanning like crazy and mumbling something that contained Drell in every sentence. Being Mordin, that was _a lot_ of sentences.

They were currently standing outside the shuttle down at the beach but closer to the forest now. Since the Nuelthak's attack, it felt better to have it as close to the foliage as possible. Just in case it would decide to go after the shuttle next.

Some of the others from the team were standing just at the brim of the forest, most of them wearing concerned faces. The revelation of Shepard's situation was surprising to say the least and it gave them a whole new bout of problems. Most of all it had put Miranda in a tricky situation. Further off Jacob had confronted her about something, his facial expression being very agitated. Whatever it was about, it was clear Miranda gave in to his argument, heading towards the rest of the team, holding something in her fisted hand.

The rest of the team paused upon her approach, growing silent to see what she had to say. After all she was the second in command when Shepard wasn't around.

"You'd better have a plan," Grunt snorted, looking impatient. He was intrigued by the whole situation and one of the few who expected Shepard to still be alive. She wouldn't be taken down by something as ridiculous as the Nuelthak.

"We need Shepard to finish this," Miranda said in her usual calm tone. "She's too valuable for us to just turn our back on, in case she might still be alive. So, we will try and find her."

"Glad you sound so enthusiastic," Garrus growled quietly, his sharp look fixed on Miranda who ignored it. Always about the business, the Turian thought dismally.

"How are we supposed to find her when her communications are out?" Jack snorted. Miranda lifted her palm, revealing the black, small device in it.

"Cerberus has put down too much time and effort to bring Shepard back to life. To lose her, just because of something as trifle as _communications_ failing, would be very irresponsible of both me and the Illusive Man. We… installed a tracking device into her armor. It doesn't share signals with the ordinary lines."

"You mean you've been able to personally track Shepard this whole time?" Garrus asked, not sure whether to be relieved or infuriated on his friend's behalf. "Spying on her?" He knew Shepard well enough, she'd be furious if she knew about it.

"Considering this might just be what we need to find her, if she's still alive, I'd say it was a good decision," Miranda defended herself with a frown. "Else we could be looking forward to days of manually searching through the whole area."

"Not recommended. Wildlife too dangerous. Use tracker," Mordin interjected, having joined them along with Thane now. The Drell looked better, probably having been treated by medi-gel which would work fine for now. He too had showed just the slightest frown at the idea of Miranda tracking Shepard around.

"Fast though. Each minute here, worse for Shepard," Mordin continued. Miranda didn't wait for an answer, as she moved the device closer to her, activating it with her Omni-tool. The others waited in tension, Garrus constantly flexing his mandibles back and forth, Thane with his eyes fixed on Miranda.

It emitted a loud beep and Miranda's face showed signs of a frown for a short moment.

"It's still tracking her," she announced to the others. Thane fidgeted slightly but kept his calm posture. "Unfortunately, it can't pinpoint the precise location, only the general area. It must have been damaged during the flight as well."

The device still tracking the Commander could of course mean more than the fact she might be alive. But none wished to voice that out loud.

"I'll transmit the signal to EDI, for easier communications," Miranda said, proceeding to do so.

"The signal is transmitting from a densely forested area relatively close to our current trajectory," came the AI's response soon enough. "I'd recommend haste and a small group for speedier permissible movement through the foliage."

Thane and Garrus glanced at each other briefly. After all their time with Shepard, they had both come to trust one another and knew each other's skill. They were both fast and adaptable. They also had strong personal reasons to find Shepard alive.

"I and Thane will head towards the signal. We know what we're looking for and what to expect from the Nuelthak now," Garrus said with a firm nod; he'd handle no protests by his tone.

"Very well," Miranda said. "We'll stay here and brief you on any changes. Try not to get… eaten as well…" she finished a bit drily. Last thing they needed was to lose more from the team. Although if Shepard was in fact… dead, then this whole mission would fall apart before they'd even get halfway.

Thane stepped away from the group without a word, as was his habit. Garrus remained by the others for a short while, probably just discussing something through with Miranda. The Drell looked towards the nearby trees, his back to the others before he closed his eyes and put his hands together, slowing down his breathing to relax. He couldn't afford to lose focus now.

It had been hard to focus ever since they had returned to the shuttle; his perfect memory making him relive the last moments he had seen before Shepard had been carried off. Not only once, but it had happened several times. Remembering his own wound was nothing compared to watching her in the Nuelthak's maw. Despite her own life-threatening situation, it had been _his_ name she had called, _his_ injury that had taken her attention.

The memories of despair were indeed harder to avoid than those of actual pain.

He could hear steps behind him and he opened his eyes quickly, immediately focusing on Garrus who stopped by his side.

"You ready?" the Turian asked, shifting his gaze down from Thane and to the assault rifle in his hands, swapping the ammo clip on it.

"Of course," Thane replied as he started to move forward, through the foliage.

* * *

_Might, might not, contain whole team effort later!_


	4. Chapter 4

Walking through this new area of the jungle proved a lot more difficult than it had before. There were no paths to follow this time which led to the trees being a lot denser. Almost no sunlight could peer through the roof of branches and leaves and since the ground already was brown, the whole jungle had taken on a much darker tone.

What couldn't have been more than ten minutes of walking, both Thane and Garrus had already managed to bump into a branch or smaller tree several times, having to pull lose from it. None could understand the point of it, much less bother question it, beyond the fact that it sure as heck was annoying..

"EDI, how's the signal?" Thane asked as he walked sideways between two trunks in order to get by them, following Garrus.

"It is unchanged. I still haven't been able to pinpoint the precise location either."

"Very well."

Unlike Garrus, Thane wore no weapon, finding it easier to maneuver through the foliage with his hands free. They were in a very dangerous situation, with not much knowledge about the planet's wildlife and there wasn't time to find a lexicon and study it either.

Both men were forced to stop after awhile of walking through the treacherous forest, finding their path blocked by more cliffs. Cliffs they had to pass, unless they wanted to spend a few hours walking around them. It was the only thing this planet seemed to consist of. Forest areas, only separated by either small cliff ridges or beaches.

"That's great. It was awhile ago now that we actually exposed ourselves to flying, horrifying monsters," Garrus muttered, as he tucked away his weapon, heaving himself up the nearest part of the cliff that seemed climbable. Thane had resorted to climbing a few meters to the side, already a good way up. The fact he wasn't wearing a heavy armor made him faster than Garrus.

When they were halfway up, both paused at the slight rumbling sensation running through the rocks. A faint hissing sound was the only warning before something erupted out from the rocks behind Garrus. A human sized creature but nowhere humanoid in form. Its body seemed to be split into two, long tails alone, a square head with mandibles and two strong legs. Its skin looked as rough as the cliffs around them, sharing the same color as well. The only color difference seemed to be under its stomach where it was red instead.

The creature let out a rattling sound through its mandibles, crouching together for added strength before it leapt right at Garrus. It didn't even have a chance to land as a blue bolt flew through the air, hitting it straight in the head. The creature was knocked backwards all the way down to the ground, landing on its back and sprawling with its legs. It shifted around, hissing, its attention briefly towards Thane who had hurled it off using his biotics. It snapped its mandibles together before darting up along the cliff, jumping up on every rock and part that it could room its wide, clawed feet on.

By now Garrus had pulled out the assault rifle aiming it towards the creature before firing. Despite its rock looking skin, it definitely didn't have armor thick enough to protect it from bullets. It skittered to the side at the shots, before the last bullet caught it in its chest and it doubled over below Thane, legs growing limb.

"One less to worry about at least," Garrus sighed, leaning the rifle up over his shoulder as Thane only needed to kneel down in order to scan the creature with his Omni-tool. Partly to make sure it was dead but also because it was good if they knew more about what they could encounter. He shut the scanner down, rising up again before awaiting the answer.

"I've tried to find any relevant data on the creature you just encountered, but little is known about it. It has been given the name rock crawler by those who first discovered the planet," EDI's voice was heard in the radio. "Just like the Nuelthak it's extremely aggressive but much less durable."

"Thank you, EDI," Thane nodded about to start climbing again when the AI continued.

"You're welcome, Mr. Krios. I'd also recommend avoiding its natural habitats as they are noted to detect vibrations through the material."

"Which is?" Garrus chimed in, as he had started to climb upwards again.

"Solid rock. Particularly cliffy areas."

Thane looked down at the rocks they were currently climbing over, looking up again to exchange a look with Garrus.

"We'll… keep that in mind," he sighed in response. This planet seemed more dangerous than Omega's worst areas during the night, they just kept on walking into every natural trap there was.

"Let's hope she's less accurate than normal," he frowned to Garrus.

They reached the top of the ridge without any more encounters though. Besides, upon reaching the top, the both of them looked around after the Nuelthak instead. The skies were clear though so their gaze stretched forward instead. There was another forest area ahead of them, but it wasn't the one the signal from Shepard's armor came from.

What had to be less than a kilometer away there was a plateau of the same rock that covered the planet elsewhere. The plateau was much larger than any forest area they had seen before and here and there, sharp rocks erupted through it. Beyond it was the horizon with brown mountains stretched along it, patches of red stretching around them.

A roar in the distance caused both to suddenly crouch down on the rocks, looking back towards the plateau. Something large was stretching its wings at the end of it, perched on one of the many spikes sticking up from the plateau.

The wings folded back, making it near impossible to tell the difference between rock and the Nuelthak. Thane clenched his eyes to stop the last memory of the creature to appear on his eyes. He had managed to block most of his worry for Shepard all this time, because he wanted a clear head. Panicking wouldn't help her in the least but the constant assault of that very last memory was starting to get to him.

"Can you tell if it's the same one?" he asked afterwards. Garrus could probably see it a lot better than Thane but the Turian lacked the clear memory to compare the Nuelthak to.

"It has got the same colors, I think. But there could be more than one of those around here," Garrus shook his head. "_If_ it is the same one, then it's nowhere near the signal." Thane looked out over the forest below them before he stood up, glancing towards Garrus briefly.

"Let's go," the Drell said as he slid down the other side of the ridge, supporting his hands on the rocks that were sticking out. He moved relatively fast, landing on the hard dirt below before proceeding into the forest.

They continued in a fast pace through the next forest area, until they reached another ridge blocking their path. Neither really wanted to cross it because it might just provoke another animal attack.

Something flew by them above, something large and both tensed, recognizing the shadow on the ground. It seemed the Nuelthak was moving again, either moving to another location or patrolling for food.

"We'll have to climb carefully. Make sure we're not noticed," Thane said quietly as he heaved himself up on the less climb-friendly cliff. Almost every part of it seemed to involve heaving yourself up to rock parts at chest length.

"Says the assassin," Garrus muttered.

Getting further up on the cliff worked, but it was slow due to the large distances between the easier to climb rocks. By the time they reached the top, it was easy to look around across the sky. Garrus spotted the shape flying towards them, wincing briefly.

"It's coming back," he called over to Thane as he looked around before he went down a step on the cliffside he had just climbed up on. If he crouched together, he'd be hidden behind it, hoping the shadows would conceal him from the Nuelthak. He had seen Thane scramble to the side as well, taking cover behind a barely waist-high rock.

The Nuelthak flew low over the cliffs, giving the impression that it was indeed searching for food, maybe even those rock crawlers. It passed by them, flying on ahead and remaining only above the cliff ridges.

"Hurry down before it comes back again," Garrus said as he heaved himself up, passing by Thane to get down as fast as possible. Thane nodded, although he still watched the animal fly its pattern further off.

"Two reasons now to stay in the forests," Thane said as they landed on the sandy ground again. Despite the annoying trees, it felt a lot safer to walk under them.

"The signal's broadcasting from somewhere in this forest cluster," EDI said suddenly.

"This forest is pretty large," Garrus said into the radio. "There's no chance you can pinpoint it still?"

"I'm afraid not. I can't recommend anything else but searching through the area and prepare yourself for what you might find."

Even the AI doubted the fact that Shepard could be alive still.

Garrus sighed, looking around as they moved. They wouldn't come very far on their left with the plateau in the way but to the right there was a very large forest.

"I suggest we spread out and search the area. We don't have much choice really," he said. "Look for anything odd and keep an eye open for any of the wildlife."

Thane nodded, stepping a bit to the side as instructed before he pulled out his pistol, releasing its safety.

* * *

_There'll be a lot of creatures yes..._


	5. Chapter 5

Shepard had remained where she had stopped, just by the edge of the forest. Now with the adrenaline gone, she could feel the pain in her body much more clearly. She had no way of telling how serious the injuries could be and taking off parts of her armor in a place like this was too dangerous.

The woman clutched her side as she walked towards one of the many cliff ridges surrounding the forests, this one joined with the plateau not far off. She leaned on the flat rock, blowing the fringe out of her eyes before looking around. She had no idea which direction would lead her back to the shuttle, if it was still even there.

First thought was to get up somewhere high so she could scout around but with that Nuelthak in the area… no, there wasn't much else to choose from. She wouldn't be able to see anything if she remained on ground level.

Considering just how stupid she was, she turned to face the cliff behind her instead, before heaving herself up, ignoring the pain in her body. As soon as she reached the part where the trees wouldn't cover her anymore, she looked around quickly at the sky, finding it clear.

She rushed up the last parts of the cliff, pausing next to a boulder. From here, she could see the plateau and even determine where the nest was. If she had her bearings right, then the shuttle should be across several of the forests, since she could spot an ocean in that direction. The other directions seemed to have either mountains or way too long forests stretching across the uneven landscape.

A firm push on her back suddenly caused her whole world to turn upside down as she rolled down the rocks, instinctively sheltering her head with her arms. First when she impacted with the ground again, did she pull out her pistol, aiming it straight towards where she had been before with uncanny reflexes.

The rock crawler dashed down the cliff side like no one's business, screeching. One shot at its front and it darted off to the side instead, running between the trees.

Shepard crawled up on her feet quickly enough, sighing at the new bout of pain. With two steady hands she held the pistol ready, looking out among the trees. She could see the occasional movement from the creature, shooting after it. A second movement made her pause though, realizing the creature wasn't alone.

"Aw, shit," she muttered under her breath. The pause had apparently urged them to attack, as both rock crawlers lunged out from different sides. She managed to hit one of them with her lower arm and dodged the other before running a few steps. The one she had punched was still recovering from the blow and a few bullets fired into it made sure it wouldn't stand up again.

The first rock crawler had slipped to the side somewhere, lunging at her again with its feet first. Shepard staggered backwards at the impact to her chest. Every collision with something sent sharp spikes of pain across her body, distracting her for the precious moments she needed to fight off anything hostile.

As she looked up, she got a split-second to see the creature turn around, its tails sweeping her off her feet, making her connect with the ground _again_. If it wasn't a serious situation, she would have considered all the times she had hit her face in the ground now to be beyond silly.

A clawed foot on her back made sure to hinder her movement, the _screeches_ she heard around the foliage hinting on just how bad the situation was. How she managed to shift the rock crawler's grip on her was impossible to tell; probably an adrenaline burst giving her enough strength to turn around and aim the pistol straight at its underside.

Even as it fell though, she could see more of them circling around her, two of them already lunging right at her.

Shepard blinked as they were intercepted by a blue light dashing right above her, hitting the two jumping rock crawlers. They were forcibly thrown to the side, one of them crashing right into the nearby cliffside. She twisted her head as she lifted herself up on her elbows, spotting the two figures running towards her.

Garrus stopped to kneel down, the sniper rifle ready in his hands as he downed the rock crawlers that Thane had used biotics on. Thane was still running, hoping to reach Shepard before more of the creatures came too close. There had been a few more beyond those he had already thrown off but they seemed hesitant in attacking. When one of them fell from Thane's pistol, the rest quickly scurried off disappearing somewhere among the cliffs.

Shepard was stunned in between surprise and utter relief for seeing them here, probably staring like an idiot at them. It wasn't until Thane kneeled down by her side that she snapped out of it, sitting up with an involuntary wince. His arm came to rest over her back for support, the other taking her hand as per custom. His simple uttering of '_Siha'_ spoke volumes of how concerned he had been.

"Damn it, Shepard. You had us all worried there," Garrus smirked, as he approached them, kneeling down to her as well, leaning on the sniper rifle with one hand. The turian's tone was amused, but Shepard could detect the honesty behind his eyes and tone.

"I'll apologize once we're off this planet, which can't be too soon," she sighed in a light tone, holding on to Thane as she got up on her feet slowly. He didn't relinquish his grip on her at all. She had small cuts in her face and judging by how she was moving and wincing she was more injured than she wanted to let out. Always the same Shepard; not going to let anyone realize how bad things were with her for the good of the team.

She stretched a little as Garrus stood up as well, looking towards the cliff behind them before he activated the radio.

"We have located Shepard," he said in it, turning his back to the others in order to have full view of the cliff.

"How did you guys find me? My communications are entirely off," Shepard asked Thane, her eyes passing by his chest briefly where the graze was still healing. Thane's eyebrow ridges twitched for a moment, knowing full well what Shepard's opinion would be on Miranda's tracking device.

"You should speak to Miranda about that," he said cryptically. "For now we should focus on getting you out of here, _Siha_."

Shepard didn't answer, however the Miranda comment made her arche an eyebrow. She was glad to see them here, of course, but now she was worrying about them instead. Garrus removed his hand from the side of his head as he returned to them, grabbing his sniper rifle properly again.

"Come on, we should get back before it gets dark. According to EDI we're closing in on evening time," the Turian said, his eyes stopping briefly on Shepard. She nodded, silently telling him to take the lead. Although reluctant to admit it, she was in no shape and she didn't know what path they had taken to reach her.

The sky had turned slightly darker than usual, a clear sign that EDI was right. But it was far from too dark, the sun was still up. Shepard followed Garrus, Thane taking the rear.

"Garrus, is this the way we came through?" Thane asked suddenly, looking around. He couldn't recognize the area. The plateau they had passed quite close to earlier was much further away this time.

"No, EDI sent a new map. It's a lot more straight forward then how we went. Seems to lead to a flatter cliff ridge as well," Garrus replied.

Shepard made no comment, feeling a bit silly whenever she nearly missed dodging a sticky tree trunk or branch. She was happy to see that the first ridge they were closing up to was indeed more flat than the rest of them. It wouldn't expose them as badly to the Nuelthak that was still seen across the sky now and then.

Garrus remained in the lead, as they climbed over the rocks. It was difficult to decide where to keep their eyes, since the sky hosted the Nuelthak and the rocky ground could have rock crawlers basically anywhere. It was neither of them that proved to be the problem though.

The whole ground suddenly collapsed from under their feet, hard bits of dirt and rock falling around them. The fall wasn't high, only about two meters but it was enough to startle everyone. Shepard grimaced as she turned over to the side before forcing herself up in a kneeling position, rubbing her head. She didn't need more hits like this really. She'd have enough bruises to last a lifetime soon.

She could hear Thane and Garrus move somewhere around her, as she looked around. It was pitch-black around them, except for where the light from the hole could reach. She arched an eyebrow at the trunks she could see protruding from the 'roof' and down into the cave, spreading their thick, long roots all over the place, in-between the ground and the ceiling. Small pillars of stone stretched between top and bottom as well.

When she fully turned to the side, she came face to face with the remains of a human. She let out a startled shout, staggering backwards and back onto her back, bumping into Thane. He instantly turned around, placing his hands on her shoulders to stop her from continuing falling before looking up at what she had spotted.

The human had been tucked in among the roots' firm web, very harshly so. One of his arms had been bent backwards in an unnatural position. Everywhere his skin or clothes were in contact with the roots and trunk, large patches of skin had just vanished, leaving the flesh exposed. The side of the human's face looking worst, since it had been leant right next to the trunk. It looked almost skeletal with most of its skin and flesh already molted with the trunk.

At least now they could establish that the trees and their outward sap could absorb or feed on more than just insects being unfortunate enough to land on the trunks.

"That's… horrible," Thane grimaced, as he pulled Shepard further away from it before helping her up. She had paled, in between disgust and surprise. She had seen a lot of bad things in her life but this was one of the worst.

Shepard glanced briefly at the corpse, spotting the Cerberus mark on the remaining clothes.

"At least we know what happened to the research team," she sighed, rubbing her forehead and cheek, still feeling a bit taken aback. Garrus stepped into the light from the hole, blue blood trickling down along his neck.

"Garrus, are you alright?" Shepard asked worriedly, as the turian frowned at her look before moving his hand to rub the back of his neck, wincing.

"I hit the back of my head at one of the roots when landing," he explained as he looked to the side where it had happened. "Must have ripped off some skin when I pulled away from the sap."

He looked past them, eyes growing wide at the sight of the corpse.

"I thought I had seen a lot of gruesome deaths but this…" he muttered after a few moments of silence. "How did they end up all the way out here?" he asked, looking back at the other two as if they had the answer.

"I don't know. The shipwreck showed no signs of them leaving or any battles. And judging by… him," Shepard said, as she reluctantly pointed down at the victim. "He wasn't put there by himself. He's been pushed or dragged in among the roots."

She made another disgusted look at the thought before activating her Omni-tool and increasing its flashlight to allow them to see further into the cave or whatever it was, than the hole allowed.

The roots from all the trees continued to spread across the cave area and she was sure she could spot another corpse further off, even more degenerated into a skeleton.

A movement made her flicker the light further to the side, spotting two tails dashing by.

"Great, it's those things," she frowned.

"Rock crawlers?" Garrus asked, as he looked around before he turned his gaze upwards. The thick flakes from the roof had fallen down on top of each other, creating a small pile. They could probably get out if they worked together.

"We should move. Quickly," Thane said, as he looked around in the darkness. He could see better than anyone else down here and he could tell that the area was huge and the ground was spotted by clawed footsteps.

A sudden shriek and one of the Rock crawlers jumped up on the roots that held the nearest corpse. Unlike everything else, they didn't seem to get stuck on the sap, moving its feet as easily as it would on the ground. Next second it leaped right on top of Thane, knocking him to the ground. He turned around on his back, grabbing the rock crawler's mandibles before they could bite down at him. The creature hissed furiously until Thane's feet simultaneously hit it straight in the stomach, kicking it away from him. It gave Shepard the chance to shoot the rock crawler to death with her pistol.

Garrus had briefly glanced behind him while he was moving a few of the roof pieces to allow easier access to the surface, ready to step in if necessary.

"Ok, it should be enough now. We need to start climbing," he nodded towards the Commander.

"You first, _siha_," Thane said, though she shook her head.

"No, you two get up first, I'll cover you from here," she persisted, making a gesture with her pistol. It was just automatic behavior from her part, she being the Commander, the one supposed to watch for her squad and these two meant more to her than just squad members to boot.

"I'm sorry, Shepard, but we didn't come all this way to have you be dragged away by some creature again," Garrus shook his head, as he grabbed her arm and pushed her forward and up through the hole. Shepard had to remind herself that turians were indeed stronger than most humans and with him literally lifting her towards the edge, she had no option but to grab hold of it and heave herself up.

As she got up on the ground, kneeling by the hole, she spotted a blue flash down there, indicating that Thane was keeping something off them. The Drell quickly turned around before jumping off the rocks that Garrus had built up, heaving himself up next to her in a single motion. Garrus was already on his way on the other side and Shepard dashed over to him, grabbing hold of his arms to pull him up, a rock crawler snapping at his feet below. Several of them stood in the hole now, hissing, mandibles snapping at them before they quickly vanished in the darkness.

"I'll have a talk with EDI and her shortcuts…" Garrus muttered, but Shepard's light shove in his back got him moving, as they hurried down from the ridge to start running between the trees. None of them wanted to take it slow and see if they had literally fallen into the nest of those rock crawlers or not.


	6. Chapter 6

It was a good thing they had been running because the area behind them suddenly seemed to buzz with life. Shepard glanced once over her shoulder, spotting what had to be at least a dozen rock crawlers running after them. Some of them even seemed bigger than the rest, meaning they were probably more dangerous.

"Keep running!" she said as she noticed that Thane and Garrus had glanced over their shoulders as well, startled by the low shrieks that the rock crawlers were letting out. If they could reach the ridge they could probably start shooting down the creatures, because running away from them for a long time wouldn't work. The rock crawlers ran forward in short, fast strides, dodging every tree and rock a lot better than any of them could and by the time the three humanoids had made some way up along the cliff ridge, they were already leaving the edge of the forest.

"Stop them!" Shepard ordered suddenly, her sharp voice cutting through the shrieks from the creatures. Garrus glanced briefly at Thane with a nod before he pulled out one of his weapons, letting off a concussive blast towards the left side of the creatures, scattering them and killing a few. Thane launched off his biotic attack towards the right side, throwing four rock crawlers back into the trees behind them.

"Nice," the Commander grinned, well aware that rock crawlers were still pursuing them but the attacks had at least bought them enough time to climb over the ridge's top. She had spotted the quick glimpse of an ocean not far off, realizing that they had to be getting close to the shuttle, probably just another forest patch between them.

She involuntarily paused at the sudden, familiar roar above them, turning around to look upwards, just as the Nuelthak landed at the ridge's top, its large wings spread out and shadowing the whole area. It lowered its head as it gazed at them before shrieking louder than ever.

Thane and Garrus had their weapons up, aimed at it as it turned its head to the side, red eyes watching them intently. Shepard pulled out her assault rifle, all the while working out a plan in her mind. Maybe if they were fast with shooting, they could move backwards and get in under the trees before the Nuelthak would get too close.

The Nuelthak's eyes flickered between them and particularly at the third weapon appearing, jaws trembling under the ongoing hiss. Shepard shifted her gaze from it, back to the rock crawlers that had made it up on the cliff now as well. Much to her surprise, one of the larger ones paused briefly before lunging towards the Nuelthak that had its back to them.

With its strong legs it managed to land right on the Nuelthak's back, tearing its sharp mandibles down in its little exposed flesh. The much larger carnivore reared up furiously, not having noticed the rock crawlers until now. It spun around before its tail swirled up to smack the rock crawler straight off its back, throwing it off somewhere in the foliage beyond the cliff.

The other rock crawlers had charged as well during the larger one's lunge, snapping their mandibles after the Nuelthak's feet and wings. It swiftly slammed its much larger feet down among them, crushing several rock crawlers in the process. Whether the attack from the rock crawlers was a natural one or just an act of aggression or desperation after chasing the humanoids, they didn't stand a chance against the Nuelthak and those few that lived quickly ran back down the ridge and in among the trees.

Shepard and her team hadn't been stupid enough to wait and see what happened but had moved down among the trees as well on the side facing the ocean. Taking every chance to run while the Nuelthak was fighting, they quickly made it through the foliage. By the time they reached the edge of the forest, they were all out of breath and Shepard paused, standing with her hands on her knees to catch her breath.

"Commander Shepard!" Miranda's voice reached Shepard and she looked up, spotting the other woman coming towards her, trying her best to hide her relief it seemed.

"We need to leave the surface immediately, the Nuelthak attacked us on our way here," Shepard said, as she stood up properly and caring little if she was blunt. The Nuelthak wouldn't be distracted by the rock crawlers for long.

"Right," Miranda nodded. "Everyone get inside the shuttle," she called out louder to the rest of the team, who quickly obeyed. That was what Shepard liked about recruiting people like them. They knew when to take a situation seriously and move when ordered.

She started to move herself, wondering briefly why the whole team was down here but she'd have to ask about that later. Not until everyone was inside the shuttle did she jump in herself, watching the doors close while whoever was piloting the thing brought them up in the air.

As they turned, Shepard moved in the shuttle, despite that it was pretty cramped with everyone onboard, not stopping until she could look out through one of the windows. She almost called out a warning to the pilot as she spotted the Nuelthak flying nearby, having fended off the rock crawlers with ease it seemed.

Her lack of command came from the fact that the Nuelthak wasn't really flying towards the turning shuttle. It was turning as well, carrying several limp rock crawlers in its talons. One gaze further ahead told Shepard where it was heading and a forced smile appeared in her face, as she folded her arms across her chest. At least this time the hatchlings would get their food.

It didn't take many minutes for the shuttle to return to the Normandy and Shepard in particular was very happy about being back on the ship. She stepped out first, nodding to the rest of the team as they stepped out as well to head back to their stations. Most likely she'd be asked questions later about what had really happened but for now her expression clearly spoke of wanting to get medical treatment and rest. She needed to allow herself that at least.

"Miranda, I got a question for you," she spoke up as soon as most of the others had gone for the elevator. Garrus and Thane quickly exchanged a look, being the last in line, while Miranda nodded towards Shepard.

"I was told to ask you how you managed to track me," Shepard said, folding her arms across her chest with an arched eyebrow. Now that she had time to think about everything, she could very well suspect how they had managed to do so.

"We had to take precautions, Shepard. You're very valuable and we… didn't want to risk you leaving without us know where you'd go," Miranda frowned.

"I suppose I should have seen this coming after the lack of a control chip in my brain," Shepard shook her head. "And your little precaution did save my life I'll say. That's the only reason I'm not _entirely_ pissed off at you. I've already said I've agreed to help you with this, yet still you persist with… trying to control my life in some way."

Shepard was too tired for an argument about this and she knew Miranda well enough by now. She was only trying to do her job, although the suspicion and constant Cerberus talks in the start had been pretty annoying to the Commander herself.

"If you want me to do my job, you need to start trusting me," Shepard sighed. "Can I ask you where this tracking device is or will I have to have someone check my armor?"

Miranda put her hands on her hips, looking slightly annoyed but not downright angry at least. "It's between the back plates in the armor," she shrugged. "It's the only one too. You need to understand, Commander, it was for the best."

"I'll decide what's best, Miranda," Shepard frowned coolly. Lifesaving or not, if she was going to be tracked by anyone, it certainly wouldn't be by Miranda or Cerberus.

"I'll write the report as soon as I can, so we can get this out of the way. Dismissed," the Commander finished the conversation, as she turned and left for the elevator. Miranda and the Illusive man could be however upset they wanted to. Since _they_ needed _her_, they had no choice but to do things _her_ way.

It took her awhile to finally reach her own quarters, because she had stopped by Mordin to get some treatment for the worst of her injuries. Despite being like a hamster on coffee, he hadn't spoken much about anything outside her injuries and the fact he was glad she had survived and was back on the ship, words Shepard appreciated to hear. After all, right now she just wanted some rest and friendliness before taking on the next mission.

* * *

_Well, that was the end of this one. Woah, longest fanfic I've ever done. O.o_

_I'm tempted to continue the "Mission file" theme, which I probably will if I get new ideas and if the interest is there.  
_

_Thanks for reading! :)_


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